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His Master's Voice (novel)
Encyclopedia
His Master's Voice is a science fiction
novel
written by Stanisław Lem, first published in 1968. It was translated into English
by Michael Kandel
in 1983. It is a densely philosophical novel about an effort by scientists to decode, translate and understand an extraterrestrial
transmission. The novel critically approaches humanity's intelligence and intentions in deciphering and truly comprehending a message from outer space. It is considered to be one of three most known books by Lem, the other two being Solaris
and The Cyberiad
.
, the memoir
of a mathematician named Peter Hogarth, who becomes involved in a Pentagon
-directed project (code-named "His Master's Voice", or HMV for short) in the Nevada
desert, where scientists are working to decode what seems to be a message from outer space (specifically, a neutrino
signal from the Canis Minor
constellation). Throughout the book Hogarth — or rather, Lem himself — exposes the reader to many debates merging cosmology
and philosophy
: from discussions of epistemology, systems theory
, information theory
and probability
, through the idea of evolutionary biology and the possible form and motives of extraterrestrial intelligence, with digressions about ethics
in military-sponsored research, to the limitations of human science constrained by the human nature subconsciously projecting itself into the analysis of any unknown subject. At some point the involved scientists, desperate for new ideas, even begin to read and discuss popular science-fiction stories, and Lem uses this opportunity to criticize the science fiction genre, as Hogarth soon becomes bored and disillusioned by monotonous plots and the unimaginative stories of pulp magazine
s.
Acting on Hogarth's suggestion that the signal may be a mathematical description of an object (possibly a molecule), the scientists are able to use part of the data to synthesize a substance with unusual properties. Two variations are created: a glutinous liquid nicknamed "Frog Eggs" and a more solid version that looks like a slab of red meat called "Lord of the Flies
" (named for its strange agitating effect on insects brought into proximity with it, rather than for the allegorical meaning of the name). There is some speculation that the signal may actually be a genome
and that "Frog Eggs" and "Lord of the Flies" may be a form of protoplasm
; possibly that of the alien creatures that presumably sent the signal. This theory, like all the project's theories about the signal, turns out to be unverifiable.
For a short time, Hogarth suspects that the message may have a military use, and is faced with an ethical dilemma about whether and how to pursue this angle. "Frog eggs" seems to enable an effortless and instantaneous transportation
of an atomic blast to a remote location, which would make deterrence
impossible. Hogarth and the discoverer of the effect decide to conduct further research in secret before notifying the military. Eventually, they conclude that there is no military use after all (which Hogarth sees as a proof of the Senders' far-sightedness), since the uncertainty of the blast location increases with distance. The two scientists face ostracism from their colleagues, some of whom consider their conduct unpatriotic.
Some of the scientists pursue a theory that the neutrino signal might have had the effect of increasing the likelihood that life would develop on the planet eons ago. They are forced to consider whether alien beings sent the signal for this very reason. In the end, there are no certain answers.
There is much speculation about the nature of whatever alien beings might have sent the signal. They must have been technologically superior, but no one can be sure whether they were virtuous or evil. Indeed, as the signal must have been sent long ago, no one can be sure whether they still exist.
The theories the scientists come up with all seem to make some progress toward deciphering the signal; however, as we are informed in the very few first pages of Hogarth's memoirs, for all their effort, the scientists are left with few new, real discoveries. By the time the project is ended, they are no more sure than they were in the beginning about whether the signal was a message from intelligent beings that humanity failed to decipher, or a random, cosmic background noise that resembled, for a while, the "thousand monkeys on a thousand typewriters
creating a meaningful message" puzzle.
In the end, the many theories about the signal and the beings who might have sent it say more about the scientists (and humanity) than about the signal (and the beings who might have sent it). The comparison between the signal and a Rorschach test
is made more than once.
The book can be viewed on many levels: as part of the social science fiction
genre criticizing Cold War
military and political decision-making as corrupting the ethical conduct of scientists; as a psychological and philosophical essay on the limitations of the human mind facing the unknown; or as a satire
of "men of science" and their thinking. The critique of the idea of 'pure science' is also a critique of the positivist approach: Lem argues that no scientist can be detached from the pressures of the outside world. The book is deeply philosophical, and there is relatively little action; most of the book consists of philosophical essays, monologues and dialogues.
Lem's similar books exploring the issues of first contact
are Fiasco, Eden
and perhaps most famously, Solaris
, although His Master's Voice is certainly one of Lem's more philosophical books.
Głos Pana was translated from Polish into Czech, English, Finnish, French, Georgian, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Latvian, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Spanish.
While Lem's take on the idea of 'understanding a message from space' is certainly unique in the depth of his philosophical approach to it, the idea was also used both earlier and after he wrote his book. In 1961—2, inspired by the Project Ozma
, Fred Hoyle
and John Elliot
had written the television script and novel A for Andromeda
, in which a cosmic message teaches humanity how to build a succession of more complex organic creatures. And 17 years after Lem wrote His Master's Voice, and three years after it was translated into English, Carl Sagan
wrote his acclaimed book, Contact
, which uses many ideas similar to His Master's Voice; both depend on the extensive speculation on possible contacts with extraterrestrial intelligence, which was novel when Lem wrote, and is also reflected, for example, in Frederik Pohl
's novella The Gold at the Starbow's End (1971).
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
written by Stanisław Lem, first published in 1968. It was translated into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
by Michael Kandel
Michael Kandel
Michael Kandel is an American translator and author of science fiction. He received a doctorate in Slavistics from Indiana University, and is an editor at the Modern Language Association. Kandel is also a part-time editor at Harcourt, editing Ursula K...
in 1983. It is a densely philosophical novel about an effort by scientists to decode, translate and understand an extraterrestrial
Outer space
Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
transmission. The novel critically approaches humanity's intelligence and intentions in deciphering and truly comprehending a message from outer space. It is considered to be one of three most known books by Lem, the other two being Solaris
Solaris (novel)
Solaris is a 1961 Polish science fiction novel by Stanisław Lem. It is about the ultimate inadequacy of communication between human and non-human species....
and The Cyberiad
The Cyberiad
The Cyberiad is a series of humorous short stories by Stanisław Lem. The Polish version was first published in 1965, with an English translation appearing in 1974. The main protagonists of the series are Trurl and Klapaucius, the "constructors"....
.
Plot
The novel is written as a first-person narrativeFirst-person narrative
First-person point of view is a narrative mode where a story is narrated by one character at a time, speaking for and about themselves. First-person narrative may be singular, plural or multiple as well as being an authoritative, reliable or deceptive "voice" and represents point of view in the...
, the memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
of a mathematician named Peter Hogarth, who becomes involved in a Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
-directed project (code-named "His Master's Voice", or HMV for short) in the Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
desert, where scientists are working to decode what seems to be a message from outer space (specifically, a neutrino
Neutrino
A neutrino is an electrically neutral, weakly interacting elementary subatomic particle with a half-integer spin, chirality and a disputed but small non-zero mass. It is able to pass through ordinary matter almost unaffected...
signal from the Canis Minor
Canis Minor
Canis Minor is a small constellation. It was included in the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy's 48 constellations, and is still included among the 88 modern constellations...
constellation). Throughout the book Hogarth — or rather, Lem himself — exposes the reader to many debates merging cosmology
Cosmology
Cosmology is the discipline that deals with the nature of the Universe as a whole. Cosmologists seek to understand the origin, evolution, structure, and ultimate fate of the Universe at large, as well as the natural laws that keep it in order...
and philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
: from discussions of epistemology, systems theory
Systems theory
Systems theory is the transdisciplinary study of systems in general, with the goal of elucidating principles that can be applied to all types of systems at all nesting levels in all fields of research...
, information theory
Information theory
Information theory is a branch of applied mathematics and electrical engineering involving the quantification of information. Information theory was developed by Claude E. Shannon to find fundamental limits on signal processing operations such as compressing data and on reliably storing and...
and probability
Probability
Probability is ordinarily used to describe an attitude of mind towards some proposition of whose truth we arenot certain. The proposition of interest is usually of the form "Will a specific event occur?" The attitude of mind is of the form "How certain are we that the event will occur?" The...
, through the idea of evolutionary biology and the possible form and motives of extraterrestrial intelligence, with digressions about ethics
Ethics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
in military-sponsored research, to the limitations of human science constrained by the human nature subconsciously projecting itself into the analysis of any unknown subject. At some point the involved scientists, desperate for new ideas, even begin to read and discuss popular science-fiction stories, and Lem uses this opportunity to criticize the science fiction genre, as Hogarth soon becomes bored and disillusioned by monotonous plots and the unimaginative stories of pulp magazine
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
s.
Acting on Hogarth's suggestion that the signal may be a mathematical description of an object (possibly a molecule), the scientists are able to use part of the data to synthesize a substance with unusual properties. Two variations are created: a glutinous liquid nicknamed "Frog Eggs" and a more solid version that looks like a slab of red meat called "Lord of the Flies
Lord of the Flies (disambiguation)
Lord of the Flies is a novel by William Golding.Lord of the Flies may also refer to:*Beelzebub, a satanic being.*"Lord of the Flies" , by Iron Maiden*Lord of the Flies , based on the novel...
" (named for its strange agitating effect on insects brought into proximity with it, rather than for the allegorical meaning of the name). There is some speculation that the signal may actually be a genome
Genome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
and that "Frog Eggs" and "Lord of the Flies" may be a form of protoplasm
Protoplasm
Protoplasm is the living contents of a cell that is surrounded by a plasma membrane. It is a general term of the Cytoplasm . Protoplasm is composed of a mixture of small molecules such as ions, amino acids, monosaccharides and water, and macromolecules such as nucleic acids, proteins, lipids and...
; possibly that of the alien creatures that presumably sent the signal. This theory, like all the project's theories about the signal, turns out to be unverifiable.
For a short time, Hogarth suspects that the message may have a military use, and is faced with an ethical dilemma about whether and how to pursue this angle. "Frog eggs" seems to enable an effortless and instantaneous transportation
Teleportation
Teleportation is the fictional or imagined process by which matter is instantaneously transferred from one place to another.Teleportation may also refer to:*Quantum teleportation, a method of transmitting quantum data...
of an atomic blast to a remote location, which would make deterrence
Deterrence theory
Deterrence theory gained increased prominence as a military strategy during the Cold War with regard to the use of nuclear weapons, and features prominently in current United States foreign policy regarding the development of nuclear technology in North Korea and Iran. Deterrence theory however was...
impossible. Hogarth and the discoverer of the effect decide to conduct further research in secret before notifying the military. Eventually, they conclude that there is no military use after all (which Hogarth sees as a proof of the Senders' far-sightedness), since the uncertainty of the blast location increases with distance. The two scientists face ostracism from their colleagues, some of whom consider their conduct unpatriotic.
Some of the scientists pursue a theory that the neutrino signal might have had the effect of increasing the likelihood that life would develop on the planet eons ago. They are forced to consider whether alien beings sent the signal for this very reason. In the end, there are no certain answers.
There is much speculation about the nature of whatever alien beings might have sent the signal. They must have been technologically superior, but no one can be sure whether they were virtuous or evil. Indeed, as the signal must have been sent long ago, no one can be sure whether they still exist.
The theories the scientists come up with all seem to make some progress toward deciphering the signal; however, as we are informed in the very few first pages of Hogarth's memoirs, for all their effort, the scientists are left with few new, real discoveries. By the time the project is ended, they are no more sure than they were in the beginning about whether the signal was a message from intelligent beings that humanity failed to decipher, or a random, cosmic background noise that resembled, for a while, the "thousand monkeys on a thousand typewriters
Infinite monkey theorem
The infinite monkey theorem states that a monkey hitting keys at random on a typewriter keyboard for an infinite amount of time will almost surely type a given text, such as the complete works of William Shakespeare....
creating a meaningful message" puzzle.
In the end, the many theories about the signal and the beings who might have sent it say more about the scientists (and humanity) than about the signal (and the beings who might have sent it). The comparison between the signal and a Rorschach test
Rorschach test
The Rorschach test is a psychological test in which subjects' perceptions of inkblots are recorded and then analyzed using psychological interpretation, complex algorithms, or both. Some psychologists use this test to examine a person's personality characteristics and emotional functioning...
is made more than once.
Interpretations and influence
Social science fiction
Social science fiction is a term used to describe a subgenre of science fiction concerned less with technology and space opera and more with sociological speculation about human society...
genre criticizing Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
military and political decision-making as corrupting the ethical conduct of scientists; as a psychological and philosophical essay on the limitations of the human mind facing the unknown; or as a satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
of "men of science" and their thinking. The critique of the idea of 'pure science' is also a critique of the positivist approach: Lem argues that no scientist can be detached from the pressures of the outside world. The book is deeply philosophical, and there is relatively little action; most of the book consists of philosophical essays, monologues and dialogues.
Lem's similar books exploring the issues of first contact
First contact (science fiction)
First contact is a common science fiction theme about the first meeting between humans and extraterrestrial life, or of any sentient race's first encounter with another one....
are Fiasco, Eden
Eden (novel)
Eden is a 1959 science fiction novel by Stanisław Lem. It was first published in English in 1989 .-Plot:A starship crew – a captain, a doctor, an engineer and a chemist, a physicist and a cyberneticist – crash land for an unknown reason on an alien world they call Eden...
and perhaps most famously, Solaris
Solaris (novel)
Solaris is a 1961 Polish science fiction novel by Stanisław Lem. It is about the ultimate inadequacy of communication between human and non-human species....
, although His Master's Voice is certainly one of Lem's more philosophical books.
Głos Pana was translated from Polish into Czech, English, Finnish, French, Georgian, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Latvian, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Spanish.
While Lem's take on the idea of 'understanding a message from space' is certainly unique in the depth of his philosophical approach to it, the idea was also used both earlier and after he wrote his book. In 1961—2, inspired by the Project Ozma
Project Ozma
Project Ozma was a pioneering SETI experiment started in 1960 by Cornell University astronomer Frank Drake, at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory at Green Bank, West Virginia. The object of the experiment was to search for signs of life in distant solar systems through interstellar radio waves...
, Fred Hoyle
Fred Hoyle
Sir Fred Hoyle FRS was an English astronomer and mathematician noted primarily for his contribution to the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis and his often controversial stance on other cosmological and scientific matters—in particular his rejection of the "Big Bang" theory, a term originally...
and John Elliot
John Elliot (author)
John Herbert Elliot was a British novelist, screenwriter and television producer. Between 1954 and 1960 he scripted a succession of one-off television plays including War in the Air and A Man from the Sun...
had written the television script and novel A for Andromeda
A for Andromeda
A for Andromeda is a British television science fiction drama serial first made and broadcast by the BBC in seven parts in 1961. Written by the noted cosmologist Fred Hoyle, in conjunction with author and television producer John Elliot, it concerns a group of scientists who detect a radio signal...
, in which a cosmic message teaches humanity how to build a succession of more complex organic creatures. And 17 years after Lem wrote His Master's Voice, and three years after it was translated into English, Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...
wrote his acclaimed book, Contact
Contact (novel)
Contact is a science fiction novel written by Carl Sagan and published in 1985. It deals with the theme of contact between humanity and a more technologically advanced, extraterrestrial life form. It ranked No. 7 on the 1985 U.S. bestseller list....
, which uses many ideas similar to His Master's Voice; both depend on the extensive speculation on possible contacts with extraterrestrial intelligence, which was novel when Lem wrote, and is also reflected, for example, in Frederik Pohl
Frederik Pohl
Frederik George Pohl, Jr. is an American science fiction writer, editor and fan, with a career spanning over seventy years — from his first published work, "Elegy to a Dead Planet: Luna" , to his most recent novel, All the Lives He Led .He won the National Book Award in 1980 for his novel Jem...
's novella The Gold at the Starbow's End (1971).
Further reading
- Stanisław Lem, His Master's Voice, Harvest Books, 1984, ISBN 0-15-640300-5
External links
- Stanisław Lem, Britannica
- Entry on Lem's official page
- Review by Matt McIrvin
- Mathematical fiction: Review of HMV
- Irina Rodnianskaia, Two Faces of Stanislaw Lem: On His Master's Voice. Abstract. Science Fiction StudiesScience Fiction StudiesScience Fiction Studies is an academic journal founded in 1973 by R.D. Mullen. The journal is published three times per year by DePauw University. As the name implies, the journal publishes articles and book reviews on science fiction, but also occasionally on fantasy and horror when the topic...
#40 = Volume 13, Part 3 = November 1986. - His Master Voice review in NYT
- Review